HME providers who want to expand their cash sales would do well
to look at adding vehicle lifts to their product mix, experts
say.
“Given the challenges facing the industry, specifically
with competitive bidding, we've seen a shift by providers to add a
complement of retail-related products. For those providers,
[vehicle lifts] can be a very rewarding category to participate
in,” notes Cy Corgan, Pride Mobility Products' national sales
director of retail mobility.
Providers are gravitating to these products because they are one
of the top cash-selling items in the industry, as well as at the
top of customers' “I need” lists, explains Sarah Penix,
business development manager for Harmar Mobility.
“We're seeing a lot of people get on board the cash sales
train,” she says. “Reimbursables used to be the core
part of what [providers] focused on, but the industry has forced
them to turn to cash sales to stay in business.
“It couldn't have come at a better time,” she points
out. “The industry and world is changing. The baby boomers
are coming to an age where they need these products.”
Penix says she has heard from a number of providers who have
started selling lifts after having to turn away customers who
requested them.
“We see an actual need that is increasing dramatically,
and that is going to increase cash sales for dealers,” she
says.
And with the population aging and more income at baby boomers'
disposal, the market “can go nowhere but up and
forward,” adds Mike Krawczyk, marketing manager for Bruno
Independent Living Aids.
Matching Needs to Products
But it takes more than simply putting the products in the
company inventory. Successful vehicle lift providers will train
their sales employees to match the needs and abilities of the
customer with the right product, Krawczyk says.
Some lifts will depend on a user's ability to stand and be able
to work a switch, while others do not, he explains.
“Do they need a lift that does everything for them, or one
that requires some manual operation that is a little less
expensive?” Penix questions. For example, she says, “If
it's a little less expensive, but [the user] can't manually fold
the platform, it doesn't do them any good.”
The provider also should talk to a vehicle lift customer or
caregiver about how a particular health condition might affect
their abilities in the future, Krawczyk says.
“What someone is able to do today may be radically
different than what they are able to do in two or three
years,” he notes.
While many customers want to purchase a product that will last
them years down the road, others will be satisfied to buy something
that works for them now and then will buy another product when
their abilities change, he explains.
“It's a ray of sunshine to have someone talk with them
openly and honestly about what they can and can't do,”
Krawczyk says. “Most of the time people don't like to address
these things, but if someone is interested in buying a product for
auto accessibility, they want the dealer to be open and honest so
they can be, too.”
Geographic location also will affect the type of lifts customers
want to purchase.
“Obviously, you won't sell as many outside lifts in
Wisconsin or Minnesota as you will in Arizona or Texas,”
Krawczyk says. “People living in colder climates don't
necessarily want to have their mobility device outside of their
car.”
Providers also should let customers know they don't necessarily
have to drive a minivan to use a lift, advises Todd Bick, national
sales manager for Freedom Lift. Many new applications are out that
allow people to use lifts with SUVs and trucks.
In other words, Penix sums up, a provider who wants to be good
at selling vehicle lifts will help customers narrow down their
options based on their individual wants and needs, and then let
them select the product they prefer from what's available.
“When you know it's the right product for the customer,
it's not a hard sale,” Penix says. “You know you're
helping them get their mobility and independence back.”
Thinking about Compatibility
But the customer-vehicle lift matchmaking process may not be
simple.
With more than 900 mobility devices in the marketplace and more
than 5,000 different vehicles dating back just to 1996, finding a
lift that will work with the mobility product and the vehicle the
customer already has can be a challenge, says Brian Mills, Pride's
product manager of lifts.
Often, consumers select a power wheelchair or scooter, then
decide they want to go to the bank or the mall. It's only then they
discover the vehicle they have won't transport the scooter or power
chair they have bought, says Freedom Lift's Bick. Then they must
either purchase another vehicle or another piece of power mobility
equipment if they want to be able to transport it.
“We still have this problem constantly in this industry
where transporting your power chair or scooter is an afterthought.
It's not only frustrating to the consumer but to the mobility
dealers,” he says.
Here is where you can do a better job in building vehicle lift
business, Corgan says. Educating both customers and local auto
dealerships on vehicle lifts is a good opportunity to stand out
over competitors, especially because some customers will hold off
on purchasing a vehicle until they find out which type of lift will
actually work with it, he says.
“We try to look at a holistic approach. The automotive
dealerships are slowly beginning to align themselves with the
mobility dealers, but it's nowhere where it needs to be,”
adds Bick.
He recommends educating local auto dealers to look out for
customers who are in power wheelchairs or scooters. Tell the
dealership to ask the customer if he or she will be transporting
the power equipment in that vehicle. If so, the dealer can call you
to see if you have an application that would be appropriate for the
vehicle the customer wants to purchase.
“It would be foolish not to work with auto dealerships.
That's a direct line of sales coming to them,” Bick says.
“Our strongest dealers have begun to do that.”
Providers also should be aware of reimbursement programs offered
by various automakers. Some manufacturers offer customers up to
$1,000 to purchase a lift when they buy a new vehicle. Because
consumers have to purchase these items out of pocket, such
manufacturer rebates can help give customers an extra incentive to
purchase vehicle lifts.
Offering Options
Although it may be easier to carry vehicle lifts from only one
vendor, Bick recommends giving customers options by offering
different manufacturers' lifts at varying price points and
explaining their features and benefits.
“I enjoy working with dealers that provide options to
consumers versus, ‘This is the lift that I offer. This is the
lift I will sell you.’ That lift, in some cases, may be the
right lift — and in other cases it may just be the lift that
[they have],” Bick says. “Let the end consumer make the
educated decision on which product they prefer.”
Bruno's Krawczyk agrees.
“The most important thing is that the user has a wide
variety of choices. They can pick whatever fits their lifestyle the
best so they don't have to stay at home,” he says.
Providers should not only be knowledgeable about the pluses and
minuses of the lifts they sell but also about the brands and models
they don't sell, Krawczyk adds.
“Good salespeople don't beat up on the competitors'
products just because they have chosen not to carry that type of
lift,” he says. “They should be well-versed in the
types of products they carry as well as the ones they don't carry
so they can talk [knowledgeably] with the customer.”
Getting the Word Out
One of the main challenges to success in the vehicle lift market
is getting the word out that these products are available,
manufacturers say.
“Before we knew a dishwasher existed, we got by,”
Penix says. “But as soon as we all realized what a dishwasher
was, it was something we all had to have. It was a necessity.
Someone just needed to tell us this product existed.”
Similarly, providers need to tell the public that they have
vehicle lifts, and the business will come, she says.
“It's all about educating,” Penix states. “As
soon as you educate a client and let them know all of the things
that are available to them, they find a way to obtain that product.
All of a sudden they can't imagine not having it.”
Most people buy vehicle lifts because of the independence it
gives them, Krawczyk believes.
“These are people who have led an active lifestyle and
want to come and go as they please,” he says. “They
don't want to settle for sitting at home, and they don't have
to.”
If someone has a power chair, they have independence in their
home, Penix explains, but without a vehicle lift it's difficult for
people to take their PWC anywhere.
“With vehicle lifts, they can go to the doctor on their
own, they can go to the grocery store on their own, they can visit
the family on their own. They get all of their mobility needs
back,” she says.
Building Vehicle Lift Business
One effective way providers can let people know that they offer
these products is to put a bumper sticker with the company phone
number on the lift, Penix says.
“Hands down, the bumper sticker is the best
advertisement,” she says. “People chase these lifts
down the road.”
John Murphy, vice president of E-Z Carrier, has experienced
similar success with the bumper sticker approach.
“We've had a lot of people call when they see a sticker on
someone's product,” Murphy says. “I've had people call
me on the phone and say, ‘I'm following right behind this
car, and I see this thing, and this is exactly what I
want.’”
Displaying the units also is key to increasing sales in this
category, manufacturers say.
“Consumers want to see these products. They're not going
to spend $2,000 to $3,000 on something they see a flier on,”
Penix says. “The No. 1 hurdle providers are going to face is
price. If they show that product off, they're going to get past
that hurdle.”
Corgan also recommends placing a scooter or power chair on a
lift in the showroom to give the customer a good visual. Having
live demonstrations in vans or SUVs to show customers how the lifts
operate also are helpful, he says.
And make sure to market to current clients, especially those who
are purchasing a mobility device.
“For existing DME dealers, they've got the No. 1 referral
source right within their doors. It's their existing
clients,” Penix says. She says that once providers get into
the vehicle lift business and begin offering these products, they
should send out a mailer to their current customers.
Watching for Innovation
Over the past several years, innovations in the market offer
convenience for users and help them get as close to their
pre-mobility lifestyle as possible, manufacturers say.
For example, a system from Freedom Lift integrates the vehicle,
lift, seat and power chair to help a user enter the vehicle and
drive without assistance from a caregiver, Bick explains.
The Automated Transport and Retrieval System, or ATRS, enables a
wheelchair user to transfer from the chair to an automated car seat
and then remotely direct the wheelchair to dock on the platform
lift located at the rear of the vehicle. The system can be used for
either a driver or passenger.
And while many lifts require both the vehicle's second- and
third-row seating to be taken out, Pride offers a lift that
requires only the third-row seating to be removed.
“To the consumer who needs the product, they're not
changing their lifestyle all that much by being able to transport
as many passengers as they'd like to,” Corgan says.
Other features also offer the consumer greater convenience.
Pride has introduced a new lift that allows users to charge the
battery that operates the lift as well as the mobility device
they're transporting.
In addition, some manufacturers are now offering lifts that
eliminate the need for straps because some people don't have the
manual strength or dexterity to deal with them, Bick says.
In fact, says Pride's Mills, ease of use is one of the most
important features for customers looking for vehicle lifts.
“The consumers want something that works
seamlessly,” he says. “They want something they don't
have to fumble around with or remember complicated processes and
set-up procedures for in order to make it function
properly.”
‘It Can Be So Simple’
Providing vehicle lifts does not require large start-up costs or
technical know-how, manufacturers say.
“You don't have to put twenty grand into this,” says
Sarah Penix of Harmar. “Get yourself a display unit for your
showroom and you're good to go.”
It's also not necessary for a provider to have to keep 20 lifts
in the back room, she explains. Many manufacturers will ship the
product right away after receiving an order so the customer can
receive it in a few days.
Some providers may also get nervous about installation, but in
this area as well they have a number of options, Penix says.
“If they don't have someone comfortable doing
installation, they can partner up with a contractor or someone who
works on vehicles. It can be so simple,” she says.
Experts Interviewed
Todd Bick, national sales manager, Freedom Lift, Green Lane,
Pa.; Cy Corgan, national sales director of retail mobility, and
Brian Mills, product manager of lifts, Pride Mobility Products,
Exeter, Pa.; Mike Krawczyk, marketing manager, Bruno Independent
Living Aids, Oconomowoc, Wisc.; John Murphy, vice president, E-Z
Carrier, Vinita, Okla.; and Sarah Penix, business development
manager, Harmar Mobility, Sarasota, Fla.
